Adding bulk to leather items

[AussieTanker]

Hey Folks

 

I've seen some nice looking items, such as small wallets, key fobs etc that have some sort of "bulk" or padding between the layers of leather. I think this is just aesthetic but maybe it also adds some stiffness and grip to the items.

 

Can someone please tell me what sort of product is used between two layers of leather to add this bulk ?

 

I've been searching of google but keep on getting references to using water to stiffen leather which is not what I'm looking for. 

[fredk]

I mostly use pieces of scrap leather. If it needs to be soft-ish, like in an archer bracer, I use pieces of carpet felt under-lay. Soft chrome tan leather is good, its stiffer than the felt but almost as soft

[AussieTanker]

41 minutes ago, fredk said:

I mostly use pieces of scrap leather.

Thank you for the reply.  That's very helpful. And is there an "official" product to stiffen leather?

[fredk]

Depends on your leather and your requirements. Wetting and drying veg tan will stiffen it, The faster you dry it and the warmer you get it whilst drying the greater the stiffness. You can dip it in boiling hot wax, or boiling water. For chrome tan, laminate it with compressed cardboard or thin MDF

[Matt S]

Some products have a thin layer of foam or similar between the outer and the lining to give a bit of bulk or squashiness. This can also give the impression of thicker leather without the weight and cost increase that using thicker leather would entail.

Cardboard and paper components get a hard time from many leather crafters but they have a very long history of use. Greyboard/millboard/strawboard (the grey coloured card you get at the back of notepads) is a popular choice because it's easy to work, inexpensive, and available in a range of suitable thicknesses. It's basically compressed recycled wood pulp. Cardboard liners can increase the bulk but also add a little stiffness.

Moisture and repeat flexing can break down the fibres of the card over time, which is where higher-tech stiffeners like those produced by Bontex and Texon come in. These tend to use cellulose fibres like card, but are bound together with a moisture resistant resin, making them far harder wearing in use. These are very popular in shoes to increase stiffness in certain areas with minimal weight.

Thin wood also works, and is how things like attaché cases hold their rigid shape. Bag bottoms are often reinforced with thin wood. Again you have to choose what you use carefully by the application -- usually hardboard, MDF or plywood.

Often though on small items that "bulk" is an effect called "raising", where a piece of leather is skived (thinned) at its edges and sort of moulded down to create a raised centre and thinner edges. This is particularly popular on dress belts and traditionally seen as a sign of skilled work. Sometimes a thin piece of leather is moulded over a thicker core. Brian ( @RockyAussie) has very kindly documented his hybrid approach that he uses to produce *raised* belts commercially.

Edited August 23, 2023 by Northmount
Fixed autocorrect *roasted* to *raised*

[zuludog]

Have a look at this video from about 2 mins. She also has videos on raised/padded belts & dog collars. There are videos on raised & padded belts by other people, Search YT accordingly

 

[AussieTanker]

Thank you everyone!  All the responses were extremely helpful and have given me a whole range of ideas and differing materials to use for my own projects.  I have really appreciated the extensive replies.

Thanks again!

[Wepster]

16 hours ago, Matt S said:

Some products have a thin layer of foam or similar between the outer and the lining to give a bit of bulk or squashiness. This can also give the impression of thicker leather without the weight and cost increase that using thicker leather would entail.

Cardboard and paper components get a hard time from many leather crafters but they have a very long history of use. Greyboard/millboard/strawboard (the grey coloured card you get at the back of notepads) is a popular choice because it's easy to work, inexpensive, and available in a range of suitable thicknesses. It's basically compressed recycled wood pulp. Cardboard liners can increase the bulk but also add a little stiffness.

Moisture and repeat flexing can break down the fibres of the card over time, which is where higher-tech stiffeners like those produced by Bontex and Texon come in. These tend to use cellulose fibres like card, but are bound together with a moisture resistant resin, making them far harder wearing in use. These are very popular in shoes to increase stiffness in certain areas with minimal weight.

Thin wood also works, and is how things like attaché cases hold their rigid shape. Bag bottoms are often reinforced with thin wood. Again you have to choose what you use carefully by the application -- usually hardboard, MDF or plywood.

Often though on small items that "bulk" is an effect called "raising", where a piece of leather is skived (thinned) at its edges and sort of moulded down to create a raised centre and thinner edges. This is particularly popular on dress belts and traditionally seen as a sign of skilled work. Sometimes a thin piece of leather is moulded over a thicker core. Brian ( @RockyAussie) has very kindly documented his hybrid approach that he uses to produce *raised* belts commercially.

Matt S, will you please pass along some info that would help me find the thread containing his hybrid approach? He has over 3000 posts, belt produces more results that I have time for on this earth, roasted gives me a lot of coffee links (leather workers seem obsessed with coffee). The information sounds very interesting.

Edited August 23, 2023 by Northmount
*raised*

[Matt S]

12 hours ago, Wepster said:

Matt S, will you please pass along some info that would help me find the thread containing his hybrid approach? He has over 3000 posts, belt produces more results that I have time for on this earth, roasted gives me a lot of coffee links (leather workers seem obsessed with coffee). The information sounds very interesting.

Sorry mate, autocowrong struck. For "roasted" read "raised".

Here is the relevant thread. Some of it is specific to using croc but the principles are more generally applicable. Here Brian skives the edges of the top layer as well as the filler layer, giving a fairly radiused rather than stepped raised effect.

 

[Handstitched]

23 hours ago, AussieTanker said:

And is there an "official" product to stiffen leather?

Something I was going to try, inside some of  the cloth bags bought at supermarkets, theres sometimes a piece of thin  black plastic at the bottom.  It is quite  flexible so  I thought about using that to stiffen particular leather projects, just a thought .

I guess Adelaide Leather is  handy for you? 

HS

[AussieTanker]

5 hours ago, Handstitched said:

inside some of  the cloth bags bought at supermarkets, theres sometimes a piece of thin  black plastic at the bottom.  It is quite  flexible so  I thought about using that to stiffen particular leather projects,

Another great idea! This thread has been really helpful to me.  Thanks for all the ideas guys. 

 

Yes,  I'm in Adelaide.  I hadn't been to Adelaide  Leather as yet.  I will google them and go investigate. Thanks for the heads up!